May 23, 2013

Count Dan Gilbert as a Manny Harris Fan

January 10, 2011 by 16 Comments

Following last night’s loss to the Suns, a game in which rookie Manny Harris scored a career high 27 points, Dan Gilbert took to his twitter account to give Harris an endorsement and perhaps some insight into the direction of the organization-

Insightful Cavs fans get strategy to build & compete for long run.Young,athletic guys & great picks.NEVER gonna waiver.Like Manny?! Yep!

Now anyone who has been paying attention to the Cavaliers this season is well aware that a complete rebuild is inevitable. However, we had yet to hear anything from Dan Gilbert that would resemble an admission that the Cavaliers are no longer contenders. It was of course Gilbert’s intention to try and maintain a playoff viable team despite the loss of it’s superstar during the summer. Even Byron Scott recently said that his directive was to win games, not just develop young talent. Which seemed to indicate that Gilbert hadn’t given up on the dream of being championship contenders before the Miami Heat.

Perhaps we are seeing a change in the direction and tone of the organization now that the team is sitting in dead last in the conference standings.

This wasn’t the first time Harris has received a vote of confidence from the owner. On the last game of the 2010 calendar year, Manny Harris got his first start and it came with this message from Dan Gilbert, again via twitter-

Very curious and excited to see how Manny plays tonight. As you may know, Mo is out and Manny is starting……

There was one other message back on November 13th when Manny and Samardo Samuels were brought up from the D league. The significance of these tweets is that Gilbert doesn’t tweet much at all about any of the other Cavaliers. Twice Mo Williams is mentioned, but both of those have to do with Mo sitting due to an injury. Anderson Varejao also got mentions for being out with injuries. Other than that, most of Gilbert’s twitter activity is interaction with fans.

Now it would make sense for Gilbert to root for Manny Harris. Both are Michigan products, and let’s face it Gilbert has a vested interest in Manny’s success. If the Cavaliers can find a starter for the future out of an undrafted rookie free agent, that looks good for the organization. It also means they can look at other positions in the draft. It is certainly way too early to call Manny Harris the future of anything in Cleveland, but he certainly has one fan already.

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  • Jim

    I think Gilbert gets what he has to do to rebuild this team. The guy is a smart businessman. He clearly gets emotional (see the response to the Debacle) but these tweets indicate he sees the reality of the situation the Cavs are facing.

  • Lyon

    Count me in as another Manny fan. We all knew he could score, but he’s going after rebounds a lot better than can be expected from a 6’5″ SG.

    Once the game finally slows down for him (you can see at times he plays rushed) he’ll be a big part of our rotation in the future.

  • Cavalette23

    During the Cavs game, last night, Fred said that Manny and JH were “the Cavs future.” I guess Cavs fans will have to just Stay Tuned……

  • Kpome

    Take it from me Cavalier fans, the Cavs have their stars of the future in Manny Harris, Christan Eyenga and JJ Hickson. Manny is the next Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant put together. Check out Kobe or Lebron’s first 5 starts in the NBA, none of those guys have numbers close to what Manny has at this time. I know JJ is inconsistent, but that is just past of growing up. Give him two more years and you will find out what I mean…and For Eyenga, does he not remind you of that knuckle headed guy that moved to South Beach…. Trust me, in few more years, the Cavs will be back on top and all you that are crying now will realize that actually, what happened this summer/ fall was probably best for the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise in the long run.

  • chucky brown

    Im all about his size and hustle at the 2, I think he could pan out to be a starting piece once the real rebuilding starts to take shape

  • Jake Udell

    I love Manny Harris always been hoping the cavs would get him. hes budding into a true star but i see him at the 3 right now because of gibson’s leadership, skills, and presence when on the floor

  • Nicko

    If the future involved JJ Hickson, I think this will be a very long rebuilding process.

  • John

    @4
    You have got to be kidding. MJ and Kobe combined? Really? The fact that you said that is the reason why no one will heed your “trust me”s. Not to mention the fact that there’s no reason for anyone to.

    Besides that, I love Manny. I have since watching a few summer league games and think that he and Boobie could be a great backcourt pair. Trade Mo for a pick and/or a center and really get this rebuilding underway.

  • Kpome

    John,do you want to take a bet?… Manny Harris will be one of the best players in the NBA in a few years….JJ too

  • VooDoo

    Are you serious kpome? Thanks for the laugh, I needed it.

    As for Dan Gilbert I’m not a fan. He tries to be Mark Cuban II entirely to much and frankly I think he has a Napoleon complex. His letter last summer was a joke and should be regarded as one of the worst public blunders ever.

    He better keep an eye on Chris Grant otherwise Danny Ferry will look like a genius.

  • Amp Graham

    Manny will continue to get better and better, because he is a very determined kid. I have watched him grow each year since his freshman year in high school (Detroit Redford). Manny is motivated by challenges. He will work his @ss off to improve his game. Not to mention he has the heart and toughness that is indicative of the city that produced him. He’s going to be a very good NBA player. You nay-sayers will be bandwagon riders when its all said and done!

  • Shamrock

    If Harris had that much potential why wasn’t he drafted? This sounds all to familiar it’s a shame you can’t know reality and still be a fan. Learn the hard way just like the Cavaliers being anything without the two time MVP.

  • Kpome

    The problem with so called cleveland fans is that they have been so beat down by negatives that they miss the positives….name one kid with Manny’s talent and demeanor that has not succeeded in the NBA? God! the kid is damn humble. The only reason Manny failed to make the draft was because he got injured. Google his college stats and you will see what I mean. We are not talking of a guy who just walked into the NBA straight from high school here. We are talking of a kid who was on one of the best college basketball programs in the country for 3 years. And he was the best in that program when he was there. I have nothing else to say, cos i know time will prove me right.

    About Dan Gilbert, I will really be happy if guys will just stop railing on the guy. To me, Dan is the best owner in basketball today. A guy who shares the same passion as a majority of his fans, a guy who is not afraid to share that passion just for political correctness and a guy who did everything possible to bring a championship to Cleveland. It is unfortunate that the Cavaliers made some of the mistakes they made while that punk number 23 was here, but that is behind us now, bygone is bygone. We are looking forward to the future. We do not need ESPN and the rest of the pundits who have always hated cleveland anyways telling us what Dan Gilbert is or is not. The only thing I know is that the Cavs are currently on the right track. They have a nice set of youngsters to build the future around, they have financial flexibility to make the right moves when necessary and there is no reason to do things in a hurry.I am happy watching the Cavs while they lose 60 games or more this year cos i know that very soon, we will be back to enjoying winning basketball in this city….Go Cavs!!!

  • Lebron23

    Lol @ Harris being jordan and kobe smh ! Mate you need to stop smoking that weed yo…. we need to get a real center and put andy at 4! trade jamison! he shouldn’t be here in the first place ! and i blame gilbert for all the mess that we’re in! like who gives up amar’e for an old ; washed up jamison ? seriously

  • greatlakes ruler

    i grew up with manny he can be an allstar player in the nba he is 6 5 got handles like a point guard and can score at will also has nice defence.he should go to miami

  • greatlakes ruler

    Dot forget he didnt get drafted and hes playn better than the #2 pick in tha draft evan turner.Manny harris is better than evan turner for all u experts